1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed generally to a vehicle enclosure, and more particularly, to a portable passive anti-corrosion vehicle enclosure that is capable of enveloping a vehicle it its entirety without coming into direct contact with the vehicle it encloses.
2. Background Art
Conventional car covers are made of combinations of fabrics or non-wovens that are designed to protect the finish of a vehicle from scratching, rubbing and other detrimental effects of coming in contact with moisture and other objects. However, when a conventional cover is draped over a vehicle, the underside of the vehicle is left completely exposed to corrosion and pest intrusion (e.g., rodents and insects).
In order to address the above shortcoming, various solutions have been developed to fully enclose a vehicle. U.S. Pat. No. 6,220,263 to Randmae discloses an inflatable protective fabric enclosure for an automobile. However, it requires a blower to fully inflate the enclosure. Consequently, if the blower is not operating or fails, the front and rear portions of the enclosure are not supported and will droop down to contact the vehicle parked inside the enclosure. There is an even more significant drawback to this invention. Actively supporting the enclosure with a blower not only wastes electric power, but also increases the manufacturing and maintenance costs of the enclosure. The '263 design has yet other drawbacks. It is impossible to avoid contact of the enclosure with a vehicle parked on the fabric when the enclosure is being erected and taken down since the front and rear portions of the enclosure are not structurally supported while being erected or taken down. The enclosure may not be conveniently used since at least a portion of the side walls must be removed before a vehicle can be driven in or out of the enclosure. Another drawback lies in the lack of corrosion protection within the enclosure. In fact, corrosion tendency of vehicle components stored in such an enclosure may increase.
US Pat. App. Pub. No. 2006/0043760 discloses a vehicle cover having two cover members where one pivots relative to the other to move between the open and closed positions of the cover. The cover includes a base on which two cover members are mounted. After one of the cover members is pivoted relative to the other, full access is provided to the vehicle. One drawback of this configuration lies in the large amount of space required for each cover member and the difficulty this presents during transport. Additionally, since one of the covers is pivoted in use, the arch traversed by the cover member is large, thereby requiring a tall ceiling for clearance. In the case of a large vehicle, the size of the cover members may be prohibitively large.
Vehicle appearance has become increasingly important as a tool to convey one's status in the society. Therefore it is important to most people to keep their vehicles in not only good mechanical condition but also in superb appearance. Luxury, antique or custom vehicles are typically well cared for by their owners with car washes, waxing and other buffing work. However, most of these cars are simply parked and stored in an environmentally controlled or worse yet non-temperature controlled garages upon application of exterior finishing. Many conventional covers are simply too cumbersome and unattractive to utilize, thereby deterring more widespread use of the conventional covers. Conventional car covers designed to cover only the vehicle body are typically made of woven textiles are generally opaque and dyed to certain colors. Under these circumstances, it is not possible to protect a vehicle with such a cover while still showcasing it.
Thus, there exists a need for a vehicle enclosure capable of isolating a vehicle from its environment that can be readily used, is relatively compact for storage and handling, and requires minimal work to store or retrieve a vehicle. There further exists a need for a vehicle enclosure which provides corrosion protection to a vehicle it encloses. There further exists a need for a vehicle enclosure that is at least semi-transparent to enable visual enjoyment or identification of the vehicle it protects.